Stop & Serve: Landfill on the Lawn

Published Apr 01, 2025 by
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On March 18th, students got a chance to learn about waste on campus with ECU’s first Landfill on the Lawn event! Partnering with ECU Campus Living and the Center for Leadership & Civil Engagement, this event was part of a larger initiative called Stop & Serve.

Different pictures of students helping to stort waste into landfill, compost, and recycling organized into a collage  Data Breakdown by Weight 495lbs Collected 320lbs Trash 75lbs Compost 65lbs Cans and Bottles 33lbs Mixed Paper 5lbs Cardboard 20% of Total Waste Collected is Recyclable Material Single Day Environmental Impact Trees Saved: ⅓ of a tree Plastic Water Bottles Diverted: 62lbs of bottles/ cans collected / .02 per 16.9oz bottle =3,100 Bottles *Figures shown are based on a single-day waste audit conducted at Fletcher Residence Hall, home to approximately 409 students.

Annual Projections (210 Days/30 weeks) Estimated Waste: 495 lbs/day × 210 days = 103,950 lbs/year Recyclables Potentially Thrown Away: 20% of 103,950 lbs = 20,790 lbs/year Compostable Waste Potential: 75 lbs/day × 210 days = 15,750 lbs/year Annual Projection Environmental Impact Trees Saved: 1 ton (2,000 lbs) of recycled paper = 17 trees saved Mixed Paper + Cardboard = 38 trees saved/year Compost Potential: 15,750 lbs/year of compostable waste could be diverted from landfill to create nutrient-rich soil *Figures shown are based on a single-day waste audit conducted at Fletcher Residence Hall, home to approximately 409 students.